Isolated
by OliviaAdel
Summary: The Mandalorian have lost his way on Arvala-7 after successfully capturing the target, A small high-value bounty that is worth more bascar than any Mandalorian have ever seen in those dark times. It shouldn't take long to deliver this asset, or so it seemed! A story based on the Mandalorian episode 2.


The Mandalorian had lost his way. After wandering the vast deserts of Arvala-7, it didn't seem that the ship was getting any closer to the wounded Mandalorian.

He suffered from the wounds he had sustained during his long battle and the sudden attack in the canyon. That was all over this little wrapped high-value target. When at the horizon the sun set, the Mandalorian felt the chilling wind of the desert. As the Mandalorian marched, he turned his head back at the hover crib following him.

He realized how the cold was getting to the shivering child. The Mandalorian stopped, but the tired cold child didn't feel the sudden pause of its crib. Mando turned his head back again at the child, speaking with his low exhausted voice: " I will find a shelter for the night "

And the Mandalorian closed the crib, to ensure that the target wouldn't get away while he's off scouting, deep down hoping it might provide a temporary warmth so the child wouldn't be killed by the hostile nature

The Mandalorian went around as it kept getting darker and darker when the sun went down. As he was losing all hope of finding a shelter, he found something. A deep hole carved in a rocky hill. It wasn't as deep as a cave but it was tight enough to give some protection from the harsh cold of the desert. "This should do," he muttered to himself, then went outside and slowly walked back to the crib, retracing the path to where he came from.

With the help of the headlight on his helmet, he found the crib in the now dark night. As he touched it, he felt how cold it had become in these few hours. The Mandalorian opened the crib to find the child still shivering. It seemed that it couldn't sleep because of the chilly air, which could still penetrate the crib through little spaces. The Mandalorian looked at the child when he was right in front of the crib. "Hang on until we get there,", He didn't want the child dead, but he also didn't want to get it too close to him..

"I think I still have it on me," he said silently when he took off his cape and looked at the inside. He breathed a sigh of relief. "It's still here" Mando then slowly removed what seemed to be a layer of cloth attached to his cape. The tired child was looking at him as he peeled his cape down to what seemed to be half its thickness. Mando then put his now lining stripped cape on with the long piece of cloth in his hand. He approached the child and covered it with the cloth.

"You'll live," he said before he closed the hatch of the little crib after they reached their destination.

With empty small fuel cans for his fire weapon and some fire from his wrist flame thrower the Mandalorian made a little campfire inside and sat down as the crib floated closer to the fire.

The Mandalorian opened the hatch, revealing the kid coming closer to the edge of its crib to get a little warm by the fire. As the Mandalorian watched the campfire's flames, he couldn't help but to think of the Mandalorian Armory at the secret base; what he remembered when he saw the armorer forge his armor out of low-quality metal. Then she used stronger and stronger alloys as he grew more experienced as a bounty hunter with every mission he took. For a moment he thought about the battlefield where he was separated from his parents, the droids, the explosions, the weapons, and the scene of his parents' final goodbye, It was the last part of his memories which made him return to reality in a sudden shock.

He looked at the child behind him closing its eyes and focusing its hand, like it was using some sort of... Force. He then saw the lining of his cape floating like it was floating in the water, and then it was covering his back and shoulder. After this he saw the child fall back, dropping unconscious. The Mandalorian then stood and approached the child. As he stood in front of the little crib, the child opened its eyes slowly smiling at the Mandalorian while resting on its back, the child then made a little noise that only seemed to confirm its well being.

Mando looked at the child while holding the cloth wrapped around him and nodded as the only way he knew to communicate appreciation. The child closed its tired eyes and the Mandalorian slowly moved his hand closer to the child's hand holding it gently with his fingers. Mando said with a low tone hoping it won't wake up: "You're not shivering anymore." Then he thought to himself: "No need to make more fire."

As the Mandalorian intended to move away from the child, he felt a little grip around his fingers. He looked at the child's tired face to find it still sleeping, but for some reason, it seemed as if he couldn't leave the kid's hand, but this time it wasn't that force that was pinning him in front of the little crib. But it was that weak grip of the sleeping child which made the Mandalorian realize what he meant for this little one.

After a few moments, Mando came back to his mind. He slowly moved back taking his finger out of the grip of the sleeping child, that didn't seem to feel the Mandalorian's movement because of its exhaustion.

The bounty hunter closed the hatch of the crib so the light of the camp fire wouldn't disturb its rest, and then sat back in front of the fire.

Mando thought to himself: "It's just another target and I'll have to hand it over in the end."

But when he lowered his head to rest, he saw the cloth around him and looked back at the crib.

Mando muttered to himself with a tired voice: "I must deliver it, I gave my word. This is the way."

The Mandalorian then lowered his head on his arm as he was sitting in front of the fire and was about to fall asleep.

All what the Mandalorian thought of that night was how to keep the child alive until it was delivered. But little did he know, that deep inside, it wasn't just for the Beskar that he kept it safe. It was rather for the faith the child had in him, the faith he didn't seem to even have in himself at the peak of his strength, loyalty and faith in his creed.

Before Mando finally fell asleep he had one last thought in his mind, a question he thought he'd know the answer to, but deep inside, he didn't know.

The question was:

The Beskar or the child?


End file.
